Chapter 7: Love and Romantic Relationships

c

2. Utilitarian love is a practical, rational dedication based on _________ and emotional _______. a) attraction, bonds. b) socioeconomic status, compatibility. c) understanding, commitment. d) intense interactions, intensity.

a

3. There is a popular notion that dating is over in college, but over ____ percent of students reported going on at least one date. a) 90 b) 70 c) 50 d) 60

a

4. Among those in the age range of 55 years to 75 years most single people now are ____________. a) divorced or separated b) living with roommates c) connecting online d) dating

Barbie

- It has been hypothesized that a low waist-to-hip ratio (i.e., when the waist is smaller than the hips) is advantageous for health and reproduction. - Men are socially attracted to this in women because of its basis in evolution. - Cultural icons and symbols (such as Barbie dolls, Playboy centerfolds, and beauty pageants) seem to reinforce the evolutionary basis of this beauty standard.

Mate Selection: Inequality

- Mate selection and the formation of the family have an influence on inequality. - There is a strong tendency for stratification and inequality to remain fixed when the rich marry each other and the poor marry each other. - This type of endogamy reinforces and reproduces the structure of inequality. - With exogamy, there is a possibility for greater class mobility or for class inequality to decrease over time.

Inclusion vs Exclusion

- Mate selection can influence patterns of social inclusion and exclusion. - Similarly, patterns of social inclusion and exclusion are reflected in mate selection (and levels of social distance, and so forth). - Research findings suggest patterns of attraction and family formation remain highly stratified in U.S. society.

High Heels

- One gendered social practice in modern society is the use of high-heeled shoes (particularly for women). - Many Americans—male and female—believe that high heels make women look more attractive. - Some researchers argue that the attraction of women in high heels is related to the fact that high heels emphasize the waist-to-hip ratio (Smith and Helms 1999). - Thus, high heels help establish and reinforce a gendered cultural difference between men and women. - In terms of symbolic interactionist theory, high heels enable women to "do gender" (West and Zimmerman 1987). - But high heels also serve to incapacitate women (to some extent) and make them less powerful (physically and symbolically) and more submissive. Some men (and women) find this submissiveness additionally attractive.

b

1. The principle by which similar people have more of a given kind of contact than dissimilar people is a) endogamy b) homophily c) hooking up d) mate selection

Social Script

A commonly understood pattern of interaction that serves as a model of behavior in familiar situations - Symbolic interactionists focus on how people see themselves through the eyes of others. - In this respect, social scripts can be reassuring and allow individuals to act on social assumptions.

Love

A deep affection and concern for another, with whom one feels a strong emotional bond

d

According to the textbook, which marital status has increased more than any other since 1970? a.) widowed b.) never married c.) married d.) seperated and divorced

d

Although Barbie dolls are common toys for girls in the United States, the likelihood that an adult woman has the same waist-to-hip ratio as Barbie is 1 in 100,000. The low waist-to-hip ratio of a barbie doll reveals that n a.) a low waist-to-hip ratio is ideal for childbirth b.) playing with barbie dolls teaches young girls that there are not significant differences between men and women. c.) due to evolution, men are attracted to women with low waist-to-hip ratio d.) social value is placed on exaggerated differences between men's and women's bodies.

Cohabitation

Living together without being married - a stage in the relationship, and it can also be the arrangement of the relationship for its duration.

Evolution

Mate Selection: - _______ has been studied to try to understand attraction and its role in the mate selection process. - However, many of the traits considered attractive in modern Western societies have little basis in biology or reproductive advantages. - The overall connection between what is considered attractive (beauty) and health is nebulous. - There are considerable differences in what is considered attractive, even within Western societies, but especially across other cultures and historical periods.

Gender

Mate Selection: -Desire and attraction are social constructions and, more important, gendered social construction (race is discussed in the next section). There is an underlying cultural assumption that men are the ones who do the mate choosing; women are the (passive) objects to be chosen. - Who gets to choose is an important question when it comes to understanding positions of power in relation to gender stratification and inequality. - Furthermore, exaggerating the difference between men and woman is an important part of the gender construction process, the mate selection process, and the construction of attractiveness and attraction. - The enhanced differences between men and women are often what is viewed as attractive.

Romantic Relationships

Mutually acknowledged, ongoing interactions featuring heightened affection and intensity

a

One key difference between dating and hooking up is that a.) the expectation exists for sexual contact at the first encounter b.) the social script for hooking up does not involve a meal c.) dating often involves the use of alcohol d.) dating is often initiated after men and women "grind" on the dance floor

Foot Binding

Practice in Chinese society to mutilate women's feet in order to make them smaller; produced pain and restricted women's movement; made it easier to confine women to the household.

d

The increase in the use of online dating website can be best explained by a.) improved technology that makes the websites more personal b.) an increase in available services that appeal to older persons looking for dates. c.) the fact that divorced persons fear they will end up alone in old age. d.) the fact that dating sites are sometimes more efficient than meeting in person.

Romantic Love

The passionate devotion and attraction one person feels for another -Ann Swidler (2001) describes the process through which the modern individual elevates the idea of love to an impossible ideal. - She outlines four qualities that constitute the essence of this (unrealistic) ideal. 1. First, love is unambiguous and clear (sometimes backed up by the belief of "love at first sight"). 2. Second, love is unique (sometimes backed up by the belief that an individual is capable of finding "one true love"). 3. Third, individuals must prove or demonstrate love by overcoming obstacles in a type of love "quest" (e.g., the romantic stories of Romeo and Juliet, Tristan and Isolde). 4. Fourth, love is permanent and eternal.

Utilitarian Love

The practical, rational dedication of one person to another based on shared understanding and emotional commitment - takes into account a careful consideration of the positive and negative aspects of a relationship. - viewed by many social theorists as a modern type of love and a reflection of modern society, individual choice, and individualism.

Hookup Culture

a new norm on college campuses in which casual sexual contact in the absence of romantic intentions is held up by many as an ideal

Dating

a social behavior that allows individuals to choose their own marriage partners - no longer the dominant mode of relationship formation. - One of the major differences between ________ and courtship was that _______ involved multiple, overlapping relationships without the expectation of long-term commitment. - a private matter between two individuals, usually took place in a public setting (e.g., a restaurant, a movie theater). - involved spending money and consuming in public.

Courtship

a social interaction similar to dating but with the sole purpose of eventual marriage - Usually took place in the Family institutional arena - Although a public matter, happened in private setting

Endogamy

marriage between people of the same social category - race and ethnicity compose one of the major groups by which ____________ is defined, although other group similarities and differences have been used as well. - Creating families between certain groups or people can reduce social complications and increase access to systems of social support and social capital. - In terms of online dating and mate selection, there has been research speculation as to whether the Internet might promote a greater mixing of racial or ethnic groups.

Homophily

tendency for people to form social networks, including friendships, marriage, business relationships, and many other types of relationships, with others who are similar - The principle by which similar people have more of a given kind of contact than dissimilar people - Patterns of romantic interests and attachments continue to reveal barriers along racial and ethnic lines.

Mate Selection

the process by which people choose each other for sexual or romantic relationships 1. Inequality 2. Inclusion versus exclusion 3. Family dynamics: affects how children are raised and the health and well-being of all family members.